Random
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Been a While
.. Since my last post.
Nothing exciting to report really. Been having trouble finding time for photography lately. Well, I shoot stuff, but at an extremely slow rate. I’ll bring the camera out and may only shoot one frame all day. I dont know what it is, but i’m having trouble finding anything visually interesting lately.
For some reason I also have 5 rolls of film sitting in various cameras half finished and another 3 or 4 rolls already shot and waiting to be developed. I’m just not in a hurry to see whats on them.
Saying that though, the other day I got an urge to develop some Neopan 1600 (not so interested in the photos themselves) as i’d never done it before ,so went out to buy some Microphen. At the last minute I changed my mind as i felt like bit of a challenge and decided to use my normal developer – Rodinal. Probably the worst developer you can choose for high iso stuff, but i figured i’d be able to minimise the grain by altering a few developing techniques. I think it worked, i was relatively pleased with the results. Sure they’re grainy, but I dont think any more than what i’d get from another developer, plus the grain is pretty sharp which is nice too.
The roll was an old one I had sitting around, and most were of photos I took on NYE, so things got a little “messy” near the end of the roll/night. I’ll just post one up for now as I haven’t gone through them all yet.
It’s now my mission to develop another roll this week. I need to get back into the routine.
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Some new Books – Araki Bresson
Ok, I never really used to be into photo books that much. I mean, they were nice and everything, but I never understood the big attraction and would rather spend the money somewhere else.
However, over the last year I’ve developed bit of an appreciation for them. Especially when I’m in need of some inspiration, or just want to look at some quality photographs that aren’t displayed on a computer screen (that’s a whole other issue).
I’ve been in bit of a photographic “rut” the last couple of months. Over Christmas, by pure chance i was bought Europeans by Henri Cartier Bresson, and found a very good deal on Araki by Araki: The Photographer’s Personal Selection. Now if you can’t find any inspiration in these books you have serious issues.
Both books have an amazing collection of photographs. HCB is a master, there’s not much more than can be said about him, I love his street and figurative work. The book features some of his most famous works and quite a few I’ve never seen before. A real treat to look through.
Then there’s Araki’s book. I’ve only been looking at his work for a year or so now, but in that time I’ve noticed that people either love or hate his stuff (as opposed to HCB who just about everyone likes). I think you need to have bit of a sense of humour and actively interpret the photos in the context in which they were constructed and as part of an extensive body of work. I find much of his work interesting and so far enjoy his early stuff the most as it feels a little more natural and less constructed than his later work. I also enjoyed reading about his thoughts looking back on the photos he has in the book, what he was interested in achieving at the time, what prompted him to try a particular technique out, etc. It was a nice insight.
Here are a couple photos of the books and some pages. If you see them around, I recommend checking them out, but be warned, Araki’s book probably isn’t for the feint hearted.
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Woohoo.. I think it worked
Ok, i think i managed to get this blog transferred to another server.
Things got a bit “iffy” for a few hours there, im not a fan of going into databases and editing values, but i think its all working now. Just in time for Christmas too, arent you lucky? 😛
Anyway, don’t have much to say besides being relieved that i got the blog transferred over and didnt loose any posts/pictures in the process (i dont think).On another topic. Heres a picture i shot the other day. First time i’d picked up the DSLR in a while. There were some really interesting storm clouds i could see form the back of my house so thought i’d get a few photos. It looked pretty dramatic. I would of loved being in that plane 😀
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Film Scanners
I developed my first roll of 120 film yesterday and I already think I’m addicted.
Actually, that’s a pretty silly thing to say. My negatives are still hanging up by themselves looking pretty because i have no way to scan them. They might not turn out brilliant, but I’m now addicted to medium format viewfinders, and really like the whole process (I’ve been borrowing a friends RB67). But that’s a whole other story.
Anyway… Scanners… Yet another thing to spend money on =/
The film scanner I’ve been using up to now was something I bought a while ago before i was into photography, it’s well over 5 years old now. So it was just a fluke that it had film scanning capabilities that came in handy.
With film scanners you have two main varieties (for those who don’t know). Dedicated scanners that you feed slides and negative strips into that don’t do anything else besides scan film. Then you have the more conventional flatbed scanners that have film scanning capabilities.
Dedicated film scanners generally offer the best quality, but can be quite expensive and only take 35mm film.
The flatbed scanners are generally cheaper, offer decent quality (especially for web viewing and smaller prints), plus can take medium format film as well.
So at this stage I’m leaning towards a flatbed scanner as I don’t want to spend over $300, plus I need something that can take 120 film. I’m currently looking at the Epson 4490, Epson V500, Canon CanoScan 8800F, plus a couple others. I’m just trying to find some trustworthy reviews and personal opinions, as the manufacturer specifications are quite often misleading.
It’s actually bit of a pain in the ass finding the right scanner in my price range. The reality is none will really bring out the best of film, the full dynamic range that actually makes it superior to digital. So it’ll always be bit of a compromise. As long as it’s better than what i already have I’ll be happy!
Anyone want to buy me a drum scanner? -
RB67 = Very Dangerous
What’s dangerous?
Well, the fact that I’m borrowing a Mamiya RB67 from a friend and I might get attached to medium format photography… That’s what’s dangerous.
It’s big and heavy and damn ugly, but when you look through that viewfinder it’s quite wonderful. Then you of course have the 120 film itself which I’ve always been wanting to try out. Nothing comes close to the quality of enlargements and fine detail from medium and large format film.
I don’t know why I’m letting myself try this camera out. Its actually pretty stupid. I’ve been interested in the Pentax 67 for a while now, and I need another reason to spend more money like I need a hole in the head (ie. photography has already sucked enough money out of me).
So anyway, this is the camera. An RB67 “Pro-s” made between 1974-1990. It has the 120 film back, 2 lenses; 90mm f/3.8 and a 150mm f/4. Oh yeah, and no metered prism on this baby (an expensive optional extra). I’ll give it a go in a couple of weeks. I have about 10 rolls of cheap 120 film I’ll try and burn though, then develop along side my regular 35mm film. Hopefully I get some half decent results.
